AN HISTORIC MOMENT FOR NATIVE AMERICANS
By Adam Kemp, @Adam_WK

Editor’s note from Lisa: Tomorrow, the Supreme Court hears a potentially historic case about what rights Native Americans have to govern and process criminal cases on tribal land. It is the latest in a series of legal challenges that we’ve covered before. A few reasons why we watch these cases:

• The Constitution recognizes tribal sovereignty. But in practice, tribes have not been given full governance over what happens on their land, especially in matters of criminal justice. 
• The Supreme Court, with this case, is confronting pieces of U.S. law that have been overlooked for generations, including treaties that the high court has ruled were not properly fulfilled.
• According to the latest Census figures, nearly 10 million Americans identify as American Indian or Alaska Native. That was an enormous leap of 86 percent from the figure just 10 years previous — something experts attribute to population growth as well as Census changes that have allowed people more specific choices on questions about race and ethnicity. 
• Alongside this growth, courts have been confronted with questions about how the federal government handles Native rights and interacts with tribes.

We are very happy to bring you the work of our Communities correspondent in Oklahoma City. Here are excerpts from Adam’s piece. You can find the full story here.
 
What case is before the Supreme Court this week?
 
The legal issue at the heart of Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta is whether states, like Oklahoma, have the jurisdiction to prosecute cases against non-Native citizens who commit crimes against Native Americans on tribal land.

• The case in question: Victor Manuel Castro-Huerta, who is not Native American, was convicted of neglecting his 5-year-old stepdaughter, who is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
• In the lead-up to Wednesday’s oral arguments, the Supreme Court denied Oklahoma’s request to overturn its McGirt ruling – but agreed to take a second look at the jurisdictional issue.
• Justices are expected to issue a decision by this summer.

Why McGirt was a decisive win for Native rights
 
The Supreme Court’s 2020 decision to side with the tribes in the McGirt case was seen as a boon for tribal sovereignty.

• Not only did the court’s decision affirm that a large portion of eastern Oklahoma was Native American territory but this also meant that Oklahoma state authorities could no longer prosecute crimes committed by or against Native Americans and that jurisdiction for those crimes was the responsibility of federal and tribal officials.
• Tribal officials said the ruling confirmed tribal sovereignty – or the ability of the tribes to have decision-making power, governance and development agendas that reflect tribal interests, perceptions and values.

But what happened after the ruling?
 
The state of Oklahoma pushed back against the ruling and has claimed it has led to crimes not being prosecuted in tribal courts and violent criminals being set free from prison. Both claims have been refuted by tribal leaders.

• Gov. Kevin Stitt, who is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation, has said the ruling has created a “lawless state” on national television appearances and tweeted stories of alleged injustices resulting from the ruling.
• Oklahoma filed more than 30 appeals to the Supreme Court, with one ultimately being heard.

What does Oklahoma want exactly?
 
Throughout the appeals process, Oklahoma has requested the McGirt decision to be overturned. The Supreme Court has rejected overturning the ruling and will only consider the narrow definition of jurisdiction in this case.

The NewsHour reached out to Stitt’s office who emailed a statement saying that the governor “believes that the State should be able to protect all Oklahomans, regardless of race, and no criminal should go unpunished.”


REMEMBERING MADELEINE ALBRIGHT

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright speaks during a 2000 news conference at the State Department in Washington, D.C. Photo by Reuters
 
By Joshua Barajas, @Josh_Barrage
Senior Editor, Digital
 
Yasmeen Alamiri, @Yalamiri   
Senior News Editor, Digital 
 
This week, political leaders and dignitaries will remember Madeleine K. Albright, the first woman to serve as secretary of state, in a funeral service at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
 
The 84-year-old diplomat, who was often regarded as a paragon of diplomacy, died in March. A child of Czech refugees who fled from a Nazi invasion, Albright used her experience growing up in communist Yugoslavia before fleeing to the U.S. to inform her dedication to world affairs, becoming a staunch defender of democracy and human rights and a forceful opponent to fascism.
 
Albright’s legacy was not without complications. She was willing to advocate for military intervention to end the conflicts in Bosnia and Kosovo. She also pressed for steep sanctions in Iraq during Saddam Hussein’s rule. When asked about reports of children dying due to the sanctions, she famously said, “I think this is a very hard choice, but the price — we think the price is worth it.” She later walked back the comments. She also cites the slow U.S. response to the Rwandan genocide as her deepest regret from her years in public service.
 
Albright’s funeral will begin at 11 a.m. EDT Wednesday. Digital anchor Nicole Ellis will host a series of conversations exploring Albright’s legacy ahead of the NewsHour’s live coverage of her funeral.

President Joe Biden is expected to deliver a eulogy at the service, as is former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
 
Albright was a central figure of Bill Clinton’s administration. Clinton named her ambassador to the United Nations in 1993, and about four years later, Albright was unanimously confirmed as the first female secretary of state in U.S. history.
 
After news of Albright’s death, Clinton told the NewsHour how proud he was of the way she conducted herself at the United Nations and the U.S. State Department, saying she “represented America’s best possible future.”
 
“She was an immigrant, a refugee, an American citizen,” he said. “I thought she would be a clear voice in the United Nations for the world we were trying to build after the Berlin Wall fell.”
 
More on Albright’s legacy from our coverage:

#POLITICSTRIVIA

Fashion was a key element of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s diplomatic “tool box.” Video by Tim McPhillips/PBS NewsHour
 
By Joshua Barajas, @Josh_Barrage
Senior Editor, Digital
 
Tim McPhillips, @timmcphillips3
Associate Producer, Digital Video
 
Madeleine Albright was known for communicating messages through her vast collection of pins and brooches. It was a visual way for the diplomat, in part, to underscore the issue before her.
 
The personal tradition started when Albright, as the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., led the charge for strict economic sanctions against Iraq after the Gulf War. The resulting U.N. sanctions had a devastating toll on Iraqis. Government-controlled Iraqi media, at the time, described her as an “unparalleled serpent.” She wore a snake pin to her next meeting on Iraq.
 
Her “most treasured” pin, according to the National Museum of American Diplomacy, was a clay heart made by one of her daughters at 5 years old.
 
Our question: Which brooch did Albright wear to her swearing-in ceremony as secretary of state? Hint: It’s an animal.
 
Send your answers to [email protected] or tweet using #PoliticsTrivia. The first correct answers will earn a shout-out next week.
 
Last week, we asked: Under whose administration did the official White House Easter Bunny make its first appearance?
 
The answer: Richard Nixon. Though the first official Easter Egg Roll dates back to 1878 during the Rutherford B. Hayes administration, the White House Easter Bunny didn’t appear until 91 years later. At the 1969 Easter Egg Roll event, a staffer of first lady Pat Nixon donned a white jumpsuit and Peter Rabbit mask to greet the children.
 
Congratulations to our winners: Michael Zullo, John Cleveland and Nancy Greenberg!
 
Thank you all for reading and watching. We’ll drop into your inbox next week.